Mende Sande Society Bundu Mask 1420 - For African Art Gallery
Mende Sande Society Mask
Tribe: Mende
Country: Sierra Leonne
Material: Wood, Pigment
Size: 16" (40.5 cm) Tall
The Sande society is exclusively a womans society responsible for the initiation of young girls into womanhood and instructing them on the duties they will be responsible for as wives and members of the adult tribal community. The authority of the Sande society gets its power and influence from Hale, the magic that women control and which resides in the Sowei mask. The Sowei mask is the only mask danced by women in West Africa. This is a ‘helmet mask’ worn over the head.
Dan Deangle African Face Mask #1417 ~ For African Art Gallery
Dan Deangle Mask
Tribe: Dan
Country: Ivory Coast/Liberia
Material: Wood, Cloth, Metal, Raffia, Cowrie Shells
Size: 14" (35.5 cm)
Known as Takangle, these Dan masqueraders specialize in singing. In their function as singer masks (gle sö) they support the "great mask" (go ge) and give expression to the authority of the influential Go society. Great masks act as judges and justices of the peace.
On the other hand, this type of mask is also associated with the circumcicion camps for adolescent boys. Called deangle, or guard masks, they serve as mediators between the camp and the village.
The Dan people who are also known by the name Yucaba, live in the western part of the Cote d' Ivoire and into Liberia. They number about 350,000 and make their living farming cocoa, rice and manioc. The Dan villages used to be autonomous, governed by a chief chosen from within their ranks, based on his wealth and social standing, however, unifying secret societies were set up and play a very influential part in the daily life of the Dan.
Baule portrait or Ndoma Mask 1416 ~ For African Art Gallery
Baule "Portrait" or Ndoma Mask
Ethnic Group: Baule
Country: Cote d'Ivoire
Material: Wood
Size: 12.5"
Condition: Good, nice patina from use.
A portrait mask, signifying a beautiful woman, these masks were danced for entertainment. included on this mask are the scarifications on the cheeks that once typified the Baule (baule ngole) but no longer exist. Following independence, the government proscribed them in order to eliminate signs of ethnicity and bring all Ivoirians into a single people.
The Baule name comes from their myth of origin. In the seventeenth century, in what is today known as Ghana, the Denkyera kingdom rose to prominence, but a dispute led to a dynasty leaving the country. Abla Poku, the queen, had to flee far from Kumasi with her people, the Asabu, whom she led through the forests, but their trip was brought up short by the Comoe river. she consulted her diviner, who told her that to ensure safe passage across the river, she would have to sacrifice her only child. So, eager to escort her people to the promised land, she decided the she herself would throw the child into the waters as an offering to the river gods, crying out "Baouli" ("My child is dead!"), and the followers are said to have adopted this word as the name for their people in honor of the queen's sacrifice.
